The Masquerade
by Kitkat23316
Summary: [Ch. 11 Up][KiraxLacus] Love can change anyone. [OC][AU][Slight AsuCaga and DearkaxMiriallia]
1. First Impressions, First Love

Miriallia and a couple other characters will seem OOC! I make them like that a lot because it helps as a backbone with meeting new characters and transitions and other stuff like that:D Enjoy!

**The Masquerade**

Chapter 1 : First Impressions, First Love

As he opened his eyes he heard the birds peacefully chirping.

It was so…peaceful…

"KIIIIIRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!"

"OH GOD!" Kira jolted as he fell out of bed.

He rubbed his head and looked up to find his friends, Dearka and Athrun, staring at him.

"Look man, we've been trying to wake you up for ten minutes! Miriallia wants to meet me at school!" Dearka yelled as he vigorously shook Kira awake.

Athrun reached his hand out for Kira to help him up.

"Thanks Athrun. I'll be right out." He said as he motioned for them to wait outside.

Kira waited for the door to his room to close. He slipped into his school uniform, navy blue pants and a plain white t-shirt.

_I hate our uniform..._, he thought as he buttoned his shirt up.

Kira walked to the door and turned the knob.

Dearka turned around.

"Hey Kira! Comon let's go!" He said as he raced to the car.

"Wait! You know it's _my_ car!" Athrun laughed as he ran past Dearka and jumped into the car.

Kira sighed and dragged his feet to the car.

"What's with you today Kira? You seem…upset…" Athrun wondered as he opened the car so Kira could get in.

"Well, today…you see I…Well…It just feels like something will happen today.." He said as he looked up at the sky.

Athrun and Dearka looked at each other.

"Okay then…Let's go to school and forget he ever said anything…"

Dearka rolled his eyes and started the car.

When they got to school he spotted Mir.

Dearka waved. She giggled back.

Kira and Athrun managed to smile, they felt uncomfortable. They saw two people they didn't know with her. One had soft, blue eyes and long pink hair, and the other had short, blonde hair and strong, amber eyes.

"Uh..Dearka? Who are they?" Athrun asked.

"Huh? Who? Those girls with her? Those are her new friends. They're transfers from another island of Orb!" Dearka said as he parked.

They got out of the car and walked towards Mir, with Dearka leading them with a big smile on his face.

"Hey Mir." Athrun and Kira said as they looked down. They still for some reason didn't feel comfortable. They knew Miriallia well, but these two were different from her.

Dearka slung his arm around Mir.

"So Mir, what's up?"

She giggled. "Well I wanted to ask if you could give us a ride to school every day this year."

She batted her eyelashes.

Dearka uneasily smiled.

"Oh…okay."

"What? You don't have to if you don't want to…"

"Well it's just that Kira and Athrun carpool with me too. And…as for your friends, they don't know them so it would make them uncomfortable."

"Well that's not a problem! Guys, this is Lacus Clyne." Mir said as she looked at the pink-haired girl. The girl was looking down shyly. She gently smiled, "Nice to meet you."

Kira smiled. "I'm Kira, and this is Athrun." He said as he looked at Athrun.

His eyes seemed to be drawn to the blonde-haired girl, who crossed her arms to her chest and stubbornly looked away.

"And..this is Cagalli Yula Atha, Princess of Orb! Erm, I mean.._Chief Representative_ of Orb. She's authorized by the Orb Cabinet to finish school and they will take control of Orb while she's away. She came from Onogoro Island." Miriallia said as she looked at the blonde girl.

Athrun smiled and laughed a little at the girl's stubbornness.

"And what the hell are you laughing at?" She said as she raised one eyebrow.

"Nothing…" He said as he smiled sweetly again.

They all walked to their lockers.

"Well, my locker's in the east corridor! See ya!" Dearka waved and ran off.

Mir walked to her locker that was just down the hall.

Athrun's was in the hallway right next to the one they were in.

As he walked there he noticed someone walking behind him.

Athrun stopped and looked back. The blonde girl, Cagalli, was there.

"Hey my locker's this way too you know! I'm NOT following you!!!!" She said as she gradually raised her voice.

Athrun waited for her to catch up and they got to their lockers.

Kira and Lacus' lockers were in the hallway they were in.

For the next five minutes it was dead silent, well, except for their noisy classmates roaming the school.

Just then, Kira noticed that all of the girl's books were about to fall out of the locker onto her head.

It slipped off the edge.

"AAAAAAH!" the girl screamed.

He jumped and tackled her which made them bash against the wall.

She looked up.

"Thank you, Kira."

He was surprised she had remembered his name.

"Your welcome…Lacus."

She smiled as he helped her up.

Mir popped her head out of her locker and looked down the hallway.

She smiled at Kira and Lacus.

Dearka came around the corner and stopped. He saw the scene too.

He looked at Mir and raised his eyebrows.

"This will be a fun school year…" Dearka foreshadowed as he thought of the upcoming events that would take place soon.

They looked across the hall at Athrun and Cagalli.

Athrun smiled as he stared at Cagalli.

She noticed after a while.

"What?!?" She playfully yelled as she laughed at him.

"Oh nothing…" He said as he continued getting his books together.

"Is that all you say? Nothing? How about something like "What class are you in?" or "I need some help you bastard?!?"!!!"

"Fine, would you prefer that?" He said.

"No, I'm just kidding." She said as she gazed into his turquoise eyes and smiled.

"What are you doing then?" He said as he turned his head to the side.

"O-O-Oh!" She jumped as her pulse increased and she stopped looking at him. Cagalli blushed crimson.

Dearka thought out loud as he looked back and forth from Athrun and Cagalli to Lacus and Kira, "Now this…is interesting…."

….After School….it was pouring rain….

Lacus closed her eyes and stood in the rain.

_The rain…Pure,_

_The human spirit…Is it pure too?_

_Fate…Pure, or is it? _

_Is Fate our destiny? Our hope? Or our downfall?_

_I believe in Fate. In the rain. That the human spirit, is pure._

_If love…is Fate. Then Fate…is love._

She opened her eyes and saw a figure walking towards her.

It was Kira.

"You know, you're gonna get your clothes all wet."

She gave a small smile and looked at him.

_If we fall, then that is our Fate._

_We fall…_

_In love._


	2. Reflections

This chapter is basically what Kira and Lacus are thinking at the same time but in different places(note the chapter title). Thanks for the people who R/R the first chapter! I tried to put your comments to use here. My spelling/grammar isn't the best, I'm sorry.

Chapter 2 : Reflections

_Then if fate is love, what is life?_

Lacus laid in her bed and thought about this unsettling matter. She never knew that she would have to face a hard question like this. Soon enough Lacus had an idea. She picked up a piece of paper that had a poem she wrote on it from her nightstand.

She read :

_Life…_

_Precious, _

_The hardest battle… is to keep living,_

_To love is to live,_

_To live is to love._

_But…_

_Is life really love?_

She tossed the paper to the side of her bed. An image of a certain brown haired, purple eyed boy appeared in her mind. Lacus could not think of anything else to do but just smile as she admired him. The phrase echoed in Lacus' mind.

_Is life really love……is life really love……_

She stared at the ceiling and tried to sleep, with that single phrase repeating over, and over again, like a broken record. It bothered her that she couldn't find the answer to that question. She was not certain as to why she wanted to know so badly.

Kira set his stack of homework on his desk and got up off his chair. He rubbed his eyes sleepily as he climbed into his bed. Kira grabbed his bedsheets and threw it over him.

_I'm so tired…_

He checked the clock on his nightstand.

_11:14 P.M.…_

Kira closed his eyes and laid his head on the pillow. The sweet pleasure of comfort. Rest and relaxation…sleep.

He opened his droopy eyes and looked at the clock once again. _11:30 P.M.…_He sat upright. _Why can't I sleep? I feel…happy._

_-Why do you feel happy?-_

_I don't know…_

_-You don't know…or you don't want to think about it?-_

_I knew something would happen today…I feel…_

_Different inside._

Kira rubbed his temples and laid his head down on the soft, cushiony pillow. He shut his eyes and attempted to sleep again.

…the next morning…

Lacus woke up to the sound of birds singing. She smiled as she gazed out the window at the beautiful scene. Blue Jays flocked to the tree next to her window, singing harmonious tunes, the sun was brightly shining in the aquamarine sky.

_What is this feeling? I haven't felt this happy since my…father was…alive…_She looked down sadly as she remembered her father. Soon enough the happy feeling came back. Lacus jumped off her bed and slipped into her favorite fuzzy, pink slippers. She yawned and stretched her arms out. Lacus smiled and took her school uniform out of the drawer in her dresser.

Her uniform consisted of a plain white t-shirt, a navy blue plaid skirt, a pair of knee-highs, and some Mary-Jane's. She tied her hair up in a long ponytail. Lacus walked in front of her mirror and examined herself. She smoothed her shirt out and checked her hair.

"Lacus!!!" A girl from behind the door yelled as she banged on the door. Lacus walked to the door and slowly turned the knob. It opened to reveal an impatient Cagalli and a smiling Mir.

"Hey Lacus! Come on, Dearka's gonna pick us up soon!" Mir said as Lacus grabbed her bag. "Yeah." Cagalli said with her arms crossed to her chest again. They walked outside and waited for their ride in the front gardens of Lacus' mansion.

Lacus held her hair back so that the wind wouldn't blow it in her face. Mir and Cagalli had short hair, so her problem didn't apply to them. She saw Dearka's black car in the distance coming toward her house. As soon as she saw Kira, she smiled and looked straight at him. Mir and Cagalli saw her looking at him and smiled at each other. Seeing their friend happy made them happy. Cagalli suddenly noticed Athrun looking at her. She blushed and looked down. Cagalli smiled and looked up at him again.

Kira woke up to the sound of his alarm clock. _Nice day outside…, _he thought as he got out of bed and shut the alarm off. "Ah shit!" Kira said as he looked at the clock. He realized that Dearka and Athrun would be there to pick him up soon. He quickly changed into his school uniform and ran out the door to the front yard.

A black car was parked in his driveway. Athrun and Dearka were sitting there waiting for him. "Come on!" Dearka said as he motioned for Kira to come over. Kira nodded as he slung his backpack onto his shoulders.

He ran to the car and opened up the trunk. Kira put his backpack in and closed it. Athrun opened up the door for him and scooted over. He got in and buckled up. Dearka pulled out of the driveway and headed for Lacus' house. Kira smiled.

"What's got you so happy?" Athrun asked as he laughed at Kira's giddy expression.

Kira kept silent. He tried to hide his smile in, his feelings in, just so that his friends wouldn't feel uneasy. Kira knew that he had been acting really strange ever since yesterday after school. He looked out the window.

They had entered a quiet, windy countryside. Rows and rows of citrus fruits, wide-open grasslands, and shady spots under trees. Kira spotted a house in the distance. As they got closer, he came to see that it was a mansion. Dearka drove through the gate and into the driveway.

Kira saw Lacus holding her hair back from the wind and smiled. She was smiling back at him. Dearka didn't bother to look back, he saw Lacus looking towards Kira and immediately knew Kira would be smiling. Athrun smiled at Kira and looked at Cagalli, who blushed and looked down then smiled back at him.

The girls got in the back of the car while Kira and Athrun moved to the middle seats of the car. Kira occasionally glanced back at Lacus during the ride, which she in turn smiled as Mir giggled and whispered something to her. He just couldn't take his eyes off her for too long.

Lacus noticed Kira looking back at her for a while. She just sincerely smiled back. Mir kept whispering to her every time he looked back. She first said, "I think he likes you…" Then she said, "Is it love? Does he love you?" and then she giggled. The last time he looked back, she said, "Do you?" Lacus widened her eyes at this interesting comment.

_Could this be the answer to my question?_


	3. Rumors and Gossip

A/N There'll be a couple OC appearing in this chapter! Just a heads up so you don't get confused. Kira and Lacus don't actually speak too much in this chapter, it's more _about_ them than it is _with _them actually in it.

--

Chapter 3 : Rumors and Gossip

Dearka dropped all of them off at the curb in front of the school so he could park.

When they all got out to the curb with Dearka catching up from behind, a crowd of girls who were supposedly Lacus' fangirls came rushing around the three girls screaming "LACUS!!!!". Kira noticed and walked on ahead, his eyes softly glued to Lacus through the massive crowd. Athrun and Dearka noticed, and finally confirmed their suspicions.

The two waited for Kira to be out of sight. Athrun whispered to Dearka, "I think Kira is in love with Lacus…" He seriously said. Just then, one of their classmates named Chihiro Saga was passing by with her friend, Ai. They overheard Athrun whispering and were shocked and widened their eyes. "So...Kira Yamato from Class 2-C is in love with Lacus Clyne..." Chihiro slyly said as she raised her eyebrows at Ai.

The cheerleading club was passing by just as Chihiro was saying it. The head cheerleader and also a _big_ fangirl of Kira, Mai Saitou, suddenly got fuming mad. The rest of the cheerleading club backed away and bumped into the newspaper club in the midst of an interesting article story. The whole cheerleading club started bawling in depression with lots of "Wah! Why is Kira in love with Lacus?!?" and "I look better than Lacus don't I?".

"HEY! BREAK IT UP! WE'RE DOING A STORY HE-

...What did she say? ...

Kira Yamato is in love with Lacus Clyne?!?" The president of the newspaper club whispered to one of the clubmembers as he looked up at the sky in praise for this amazing story. He jumped up and raised his fist in the air. "THIS IS OUR NEW STORY!!!!!!" He maniacally yelled. By now...practically everyone in their section of the school knew.

Kira gathered his books and started walking to class. He felt...awkard. He held his books tighter. _Why are they all...staring at me?_ He quickened his pace, which soon turned into a hurried canter down the hallway. Incomprehensible whispers echoed in his ear, the feeling of being stared down by dozens of people he didn't know, yet...he felt a space of safety...Lacus. His hurried canter had turned into a brisk stroll into the classroom.

As he sat down he heard people whispering, those whispers...included his name in it. Kira leaned closer and tried to listen in. _Okay...all I can understand are...Lacus...Kira...and some other stuff that I can't quite understand..._

Athrun and Dearka were walking to class when suddenly a classmate of Ai from class 1-A passed by, repeating Athrun's whisper. "So did you hear? Rumor has it that Kira Yamato is supposedly in love with Lacus Clyne! How's that for a lovely couple?" The girl squealed to another classmate. Their mouths dropped to the ground. "Shit." Dearka muttered under his breath. They walked uneasily into classroom 2-C, wincing at each whisper of Kira's name. They slowly sat down in the seats farthest from Kira, who seemed oblivious to who were the likely suspects for starting this gossip chain.

Kira looked up and smiled. He saw an angel, Lacus, walk in. Her long, flowing pink hair gently bouncing off the small of her back with each passing step. She looked beautiful...but, she wasn't his to claim.

"Hey Kira!" Lacus bubbled joyfully as she bent down to hug Kira. Kira's cheeks turned a bright red, and Lacus' cheeks were already rosy, but hints of crimson were stained onto it. "Um, Dearka...they're _both_ so oblivious to the fact that they're the _biggest_ piece of gossip ever mentioned around here. Oh god why did I start that rumor?!? I didn't mean to!" Athrun silently cried out to Dearka, who just patted his back and sighed.

...After School...

Cagalli grabbed her backpack loaded with homework and books and started walking to the curb to meet Lacus and Miriallia. She stopped and turned around to face an open door in the building across from the lockers. It was the cheerleading club's meeting room, which was usually _the loudest_ _and noisiest_ room ever. Cagalli walked towards the door and stepped to the side so she wouldn't be seen. All she could see was a bunch of girls dressed in black cheerleading outfits. She spotted a bawling Mai Saitou in the front, "Oh why, why?!? Why did Kira fall in love with Lacus?!? I'm head cheerleader...I'M PERFECT FOR HIM, RIGHT?!??!?!!" She bawled and screamed out. Obviously she wasn't _really_ crying, more like upset.

Cagalli halfway fainted, but soon recovered before she fell and rubbed her temples. _I can't believe this..._ She thought as she ran back to the curb. It hadn't hit her yet of the real situation here.

Dearka and Athrun grabbed their backpacks and met a merry Kira at his locker. They all started walking to the curb. It was dead silent, yet...Kira still kept that overjoyed expression on his face.

Cagalli laid her hand on Miriallia's shoulder and looked at Lacus when she got to the curb. "Okay Lacus, brace yourself, what you are about to hear is _strictly_ confidential. There's a rumor going around...and it's about you." Cagalli whispered as she sharply turned her head frequently to check for any closeby eavesdroppers. Lacus cupped her hand over her mouth. "How awful. I hate gossips and rumors."

"No, see, you don't understand. Kira is in love with y––" Cagalli whispered, but was cut off by the three approaching guys, Athrun, Dearka, and...Kira. Lacus had turned away before she finished completing her sentence. "Hey!" Dearka grinned, while Athrun kept a somewhat relaxed face and Kira smiled. Lacus' anxious expression from the rumor Cagalli was about to spill turned into a delighted smile as she looked at Kira, who noticed her and ran away from Athrun and Dearka to stand next to her. "All right, let's go home then!" Dearka shrugged as he walked ahead to the car. Athrun put his sunglasses on, and they all walked to get into the car.

During the ride, Lacus was sitting next to Kira, leaving Cagalli and Miriallia to sit in the back next to Athrun. "Hey Mir, you'll never guess what I heard today!" Cagalli whispered as she leaned towards Miriallia. Athrun looked up from his resting position and tried to see if the rumor spread all the way to Lacus' friends themselves as he scooted over towards Cagalli. "Okay, so right after school I passed by the cheerleading club's meeting room and they kept bawling and saying that Kira is in _love_ with Lacus." Cagalli whispered again as she raised her eyebrows twice. Mir popped up and down on her seat and clapped her hands in excitement. "Oh yay! So it_ is_ love after all...Just look at them, they're inseperable!" She silently squealed as she gestured towards the lovely pair, but they weren't an item yet. None of the two were quite certain or maybe even aware of their feelings for one another.

_Why am I so happy when I'm around her? I know that I like her as a friend...but...what about...more than a friend?_ Kira thought as he used his peripheral vision to keep an eye on that lovely girl, Lacus. Just then he overheard a little of what Cagalli was saying, he heard it better than the girls in the classroom because Cagalli was a loud, stern girl and their raucous classroom environment was loud.

He actually for some reason didn't mind what she said...

_Maybe I...do love her..._


	4. Sit Ups Just Aren't My Thing Pt 1

A/N The "---"(three dash line) means it's from another person's point of view.

Interesting Fact About This Story/Chapter : Some parts are based on real life things! Some aren't. You can fish out the ones that are and aren't by yourself...

Chapter 4 : Sit-ups Just Aren't My Thing Part 1

"Hey Cagalli? Are you going to bring your MP3 player for the mile run?" Lacus asked as she changed into her gym shorts. "Nope, we can't do the mile...it's pouring!" Cagalli said as she looked out the window and pointed out the obvious. Lacus looked down in disappointment.

She covered her ears and cringed. A loud whistle had blared and echoed down the hallway. Mir, Cagalli, and Lacus popped their heads out the door of the girl's locker room. "All right! Due to the lack of rooms and heavy rain, our boys' and girls' P.E. classes will merge together! Everybody! In the hallway, pronto!!!" Their P.E. teacher, Ms. Kaeda yelled. She was a tall, husky, brown-haired woman who was just plain ugly. The three girls walked out of the locker room and towards the hallway where Ms. Kaeda was standing with her arms rested on her hips and her hands balled into angry fists.

There were blue mats carefully laid out against the wall and sticking out towards the smaller wall perpendicular to the other wall. Lacus bit her lip, _I hope we don't do..._, she gulped. Mir was too busy talking to Chihiro about the recent gossip incident, and Cagalli was stretching out her legs and abs. Lacus saw from the corner of her eye something that encouraged her to do better. _I...I want to impress him, I don't want to look weak in front of him..._

---

Kira changed into his gym shorts and was about to walk out the door to join Dearka and Athrun who were waiting outside until he heard a loudly annoying whistle coming from right outside the door. It was the gym teacher, Ms. Kaeda yelling for them. Kira slowly creaked the door opened, it stopped. It had hit a blue mat, and Ms. Kaeda gave him an evil glare. He quickly jumped to the side next to Athrun in embarassment. He looked up and saw Lacus in the corner of his eye. Kira smiled in delight.

---

"All right! Boys to the left and stay put! Keep the chatter down!! Girls, on the mats! Find a partner!!!!! SIT-UPS!!!!" Ms. Kaeda yelled as she motioned for the boys to move to the side. Lacus jolted, for she was startled at the sound of...sit-ups... She slowly walked to the first mat with Cagalli by her side. Her arms were dangling hopelessly at her sides. Lacus slowly laid down and bent her knees in the sit-up position. The mat was _freezing_ cold and her warm, soft face had turned cold to the touch. Cagalli put her hands and knees on Lacus' feet to hold her down, and she smiled. "You'll do fine." Cagalli said in a nice, reassuring voice. Lacus looked in the corner of her eye again, Kira was watching, and she was at the _first_ mat at the _front_ where the _boys were standing_! She took a deep breath.

"Okay, get ready...GO!" Ms. Kaeda screamed out as she started the timer. They had one minute to do forty-seven sit-ups, _not crunches_, sit-ups...Lacus started out at a good pace, her abdomen was only minorly aching so far. She grunted. "Ouch!!!!" Her pace slowed down to two sit-ups every three seconds. By now, her feet felt like miles upon miles of bricks were pounding on her feet, her abdomen began feeling like a hard rock pulling her figure down to the mat. Lacus looked in the corner of her eye once more, _He's watching... _

She cringed and her pace went three sit-ups every six seconds. "Thirty seconds left!" Ms. Kaeda yelled as she concentrated on the timer. Lacus grunted embarassingly loud. Her face turned a bright red. A few people laughed, she looked in the corner of her eye one last time, Kira had heard her. _Now he thinks that I'm just a freak and a weakling...I'm no good for him...He's better off with...that Mai Saitou..._

"And...TIME!!!!" Ms. Kaeda finished as she clicked the timer and got her notebook out. Lacus rubbed her abdomen. "How many did I do?" She asked as she anxiously awaited her answer. Cagalli bit her lip, "Um...thirty-five." She said in an somber voice. Lacus looked down in disappointment once more, _I really am...weak..._

"How many?" Ms. Kaeda asked she leaned closer to Lacus, holding her notebook and pencil. "Thirty-five." Cagalli answered as she worriedly looked at Lacus. Lacus slowly got up off the mat as Cagalli helped her up. Mir rushed up to Lacus, "So how'd you do?" She asked with a smile on her face. Lacus mouthed the words so nobody would hear her number. Mir's smile was wiped off her face, it had transformed into an "are you okay" face. "All right boys! On the mats now!" Ms. Kaeda yelled after she got all the sit-up datum from the girls.

Lacus looked up and saw Kira get on the last mat. "And...GO!" Ms. Kaeda said as she started the timer. Most of the guys were going at a good pace, but Kira was surprisingly...

doing _extremely_ well.

He was going at a rate of about three times faster than Lacus when she started, six sit-ups every four seconds! _Now...I really am a weakling in his eyes...He's so strong... _Cagalli and Mir looked at each other, they had no idea what was going on in Lacus' mind, but what they did know was that she was upset. Her usual sweet, gentle, and kind expression was now a depressed face. Cagalli placed her hand on Lacus' shoulder and gave her a gentle smile. Just then, Lacus thought back to a poem she wrote during a lonely and stormy night alone at her house.

_Moonbeams provided light,_

_As she walked once again through the corridor..._

_Alone._

_Tears streamed down her face,_

_No hand to dry her tears..._

_Not a soul she could talk to,_

_to..._

_cherish._

_She opened up a photo album,_

_Pictures of her...alone. Tears formed small puddles at her feet, a memory held in each of them._

_She turned to the last page, a bright picture. No, it wasn't necessarily glowing like the sun..._

_The people were...happy, smiling, laughing. Friendly arms hugged a figure in the middle._

_Her tears had turned into tears of joy as she laughed and remembered._

_That figure...was her._

_She was not alone..._

"And...TIME!" Ms. Kaeda yelled. Lacus shook her head as she snapped out of her daydream. Lacus listened in carefully as Ms. Kaeda bent down to Kira and asked for his sit-up count.

"Seventy." Kira said as he wiped the sweat off and got up off the mat. All the girls were squealing in delight and in awe of him. Lacus looked down in embarassment. Though she knew that she really didn't have an excuse to be embarassed now, she kept thinking that she was no good for him.

"All right get changed and get your stuff from your lockers! You have fifteen minutes until the bell rings." Ms. Kaeda yelled as she began collecting the mats.

Lacus quickly ran into the locker room to change and when she came out, Kira, Athrun, Dearka, and a couple of their other friends were sitting on the wall praising Kira for his amazing count.

They suddenly stopped and turned to Lacus, who blushed and looked down. "Oh, I'm sorry..." Lacus quietly said as she ran off to her locker to catch up with Cagalli and Mir. She could hear people snickering and whispering behind her. She tried to block out the sound as her face became hot. A single teardrop gleamed as she turned the corner to the back of the building.

---

Kira sat down with Athrun, Dearka, and three of his other friends. Their names were Ryouichi, Akashi, and Sei. He didn't normally hang around with them because they were complete jerks. They were only "friends" because they had almost all classes together.

"Wow Kira, I'm impressed. You got more than me! But...I did do one hundred this morning as soon as I woke up! So I'm a little worn out. Hey, I technically did about one hundred and fifty so I beat you! Heh." Sei arrogantly boasted. "Well, I don't really care what I get or not." Kira calmly added. Then they all started arguing about who was better, while Athrun, Dearka, and Kira started silently complaining to each other about the noisy three beside them.

They all heard the door open. Kira smiled, it was Lacus. He heard her apologize quietly and then she ran off. Ryouichi, Akashi, and Sei began laughing and snickering hysterically. Just then, Kira's heart tore a little. He saw a teardrop shine as it broke away from Lacus' soft face.

Kira quickly by instinct and without thinking jumped up and ran after her. He turned the corner and saw her sitting in the rain with her head drooped. He walked towards her.

---

Athrun and Dearka were startled with Kira's sudden movement. _Come on Kira...don't mess this up now..._ Athrun thought as he smiled at his best friend. The heavy downpour had made puddles and even floods where the car lanes were.

---

He could hear a quiet, shaky murmur and sniffling. "E-Excuse me? Miss Lacus?" Kira said as he bent down to her level and pushed her soft, pink locks back behind her ears. She looked up. He could see the tears resting on her cheekbones.

Lacus looked up and noticed him smiling at her. It was the kindest smile she had ever seen. For a moment she gazed into his eyes. Then she looked down and blushed. "Does it hurt?" Kira asked. "It...hurts really bad...my heart." Lacus quietly murmured. Kira pulled back in shock. "Why...does your _heart_ hurt?" Kira asked as he sat down next to Lacus.

"Heartbreak..." She said as she sighed and pulled herself together. Tears stopped streaming down her face, and she smiled.

"Kira...Would you find it wierd if I told you about something...someone so important to me?" Lacus sweetly asked as the rain continued pouring heavily on them.

"Hm? Not at all..." Kira answered back.

Lacus happily smiled. "All right..." She took a deep breath.

"That person that's important to me...

is you."

-To Be Continued...-


	5. Sit Ups Just Aren't My Thing Pt 2

A/N Remember, this is _NOT_ the climax of the story! So right now I'm just making everything fall into place here...-slyly smiles-

Chapter 5 : Sit-Ups Just Aren't My Thing Part 2

Kira was shocked at first, but he quickly smiled. "Why am _I _important to you?" He asked as he smiled delightfully. The rain had stopped and the sun started to shine like heaven on earth.

Lacus blinked and answered straight away. She knew the answer from the very beginning. "Because...Because I—"

"Aaaaaaall right! E-D-U-C-A-T-I-O-N!!!! What does that spell?!?"

"EDUCATION!!!!!! YEAH!!!!!! Woohoo!"

Kira and Lacus were startled by the sudden and loud yelling. It was the cheerleading club, and Mai was doing a bunch of kicks and cartwheels. Trailing behind them was the newspaper club taking numerous amounts of pictures that blinded Kira. All he could hear were shouts and clicks coming from the cameras. He covered his ear with one hand to block out the sound, and shielded his eyes with the other hand to stop the lights from flashing in his eyes.

He heard footsteps heading off in the other direction of the large crowd. "Lacus!!! Lacus!!!!!" He yelled. But it was too late, she was nowhere in sight, and the crowd was advancing closer to him. Mai stood and smiled proudly with her hands on her hips at her accomplishment. _If I can't have him...nobody can..._ She maniacally thought and grinned.

Kira got up and pushed his way out of the crowd. He could hear someone yelling at him and a whole other bunch of nonsense that he couldn't and didn't want to understand. His whole heart had dropped when she left. _What was she about to say..._ He thought as he ran to his locker. He spotted Athrun and Dearka by it. Kira grabbed his backpack without saying a word and left campus.

He wanted to find Lacus and ask her what she was going to say, but he had no idea whether she had left school, or was still there. But if he went back there, a crowd would be waiting there and he would have no chance of reaching her. Kira decided to just run home since it took about five minutes if you knew the shortcut.

On the way, he looked back and reflected on the first time he met Lacus to today. _Has it really been just three__ days?_ Kira thought as he counted how long ago it was that he saw that shy girl with long, flowy pink hair standing next to Mir.

Once he rounded the corner and ran up to his door he slid the key in and rushed to his bed, kicking his shoes off his feet making it ricochet off the wall. He lay flat on his bed, sprawled out. Kira's backpack fell off his arm to the floor. Tears began staining his bedsheets, forming large obscure wet spots. He quietly cried himself to sleep, it had been a while since he last cried.

He thought back to that moment where he first spotted Lacus sitting in the rain.

_Heartbreak..._

_But what was she really going to say?_

---

Athrun and Dearka noticed Kira come from around the corner with a large crowd following close behind. "I have a bad feeling about this..." Dearka quietly noted. Kira quickly yanked his backpack out of his locker and ran off campus. Athrun frowned and was about to go after him until Dearka pulled him back, "Don't, we'll miss our last period at homeroom." Dearka said in a somber voice.

_Why would we have to go back to homeroom? We don't do anything except listen to announcements and reminders. He would've gladly skipped this last period to do something like this...I wonder..what could he be thinking... _Athrun thought as he questioned in his mind Dearka's intentions.

As they walked in and sat down in homeroom, they saw the class rep., Maya Matsuragi, holding a big stack of papers. She had brown hair that showed tints of maroon. She had gentle, hazel eyes much like Lacus'. She had a cute hourglass shape and a kind, inviting smile.

"All right everyone sit down and we can finish early!" She yelled. Everyone became silent, they wanted to leave this treacherous place of learning. "Okay, I have one announcement. And it's...Our school's twenty-fifth annual Masquerade Ball!!! It will take place next week on friday!" She bubbled as she started passing out information packets.

All the girls began freaking out because they forgot that it was coming up and didn't purchase an exquisite gown and mask yet. But the wealthier girls didn't worry because they could just get them custom-made, and most had already had them made because someone else had remembered for them.

All the guys started searching around the class for a pretty date. "Okay! SH! SHUT UP YOU GUYS!!!!!" Maya screamed out so loud that it echoed throughout the whole school. Everyone was silent once more. "Okay, let me explain this _briefly_ to you guys. It starts at 7:00 P.M. and ends at 12:30 A.M. Since it's the twenty-fifth Annual Masquerade Ball, we will be choosing one special couple to have the last dance all to themselves, including a bouquet of roses. Now, you must find a date by next week on monday when we meet here, and turn in your slips with the money attached so you all can go, along with the rest of the school. Sound good?" She asked as she wrote some stuff in her pocket memo.

The whole class agreed. Dearka and Athrun shrugged and went along with the rest of the class agreeing. At the same time, they were both thinking about Lacus and Kira. What could they be doing right now and how will this turn out in the end?

"Dismissed!" Maya gratefully said as she closed her memo and slid it into her pocket. Soon enough, the room was empty. Maya popped her head in the room, "Are you boys going to leave?" She giggled. "Huh? Oh yeah..yeah." Dearka said as he woke from his thought trance. Maya frowned. "What's wrong? And where is Kira? I saw him earlier at the lockers and I figured he was just making a quick stop at the library." She seriously said as she entered the classroom and walked towards the two sitting in the middle of the room.

"If you promise you won't tell anyone, I'll tell you the whole story." Athrun said. For a moment Maya didn't realize he was there. Athrun was sulking in a slump in his chair. "I promise." She nodded. Athrun sighed. "Okay. So earlier Kira saw Lacus cry as she ran away from the locker room because of what Ryouichi, Sei, and Akashi did. They laughed at her as she came out and apologized. So he ran after her and I don't know what happened next. The next thing I knew...Kira was running off solemnly with a huge crowd coming from behind. And I haven't seen Lacus since then either..." Athrun spilled out.

"Oh...I get it. So...you think he's in love with her." She figured out. You see, Maya wasn't that type of girl, the fake one. She always got good grades and wanted to become a philosophy major. She also hung out with Lacus at times so her way of understanding people rubbed off on her.

"Exactly. But we don't think, we know. I mean, if it's not that, then what?" Dearka rhetorically asked. "I see..." She nodded. Maya gasped as a light bulb appeared above her head. "I have an idea..." She joyfully said as she leaned in closer to the two in a huddle.

Inaudible whispers echoed throughout the classroom that no one could hear unless you were actually in the huddle...

"And that's it." She finished as they leaned out of the huddle. Athrun broke out a small smile. "Now we just wait and guide them..." Dearka added.

The three smiled contently at their practical plan.


	6. Her Problems

A/N This chapter is centered around Lacus. Just another note, they started school on wednesday, like my school! lol. Don't worry, Kira's coming up. There are some nods to a couple scenes from Proposing to Lacus Clyne, but basically this is an AU before that one.

Chapter 6 : Her Problems

Lacus lay in her bed and panted as tears dropped, one by one, off her crying face. She had quickly run off campus to her home, which was about a mile away. Her athletic skills were average, so she could at least make it jogging at the very least. Since it was a four day weekend, she decided to just stay home. Contact with anyone from school would just upset her and make her break down and cry right in front of them maybe.

She thought about what happened, and her mistakes. _How could I have been so foolish? I should've just gone out with it..._ She reflected on her hesitated actions.

But, she decided that it would only make her a coward to just run away and cry. _I'll try next time..._ She thought and she tried to break out a small smile.

...a couple hours later...

She woke up to the sound of her cell phone ringing with a sharp, crisp tone. Lacus slowly raised her drooping hand and grasped it firmly. She flipped the top open.

"He-Hello?" She stuttered quietly. "Hey Lacus." A girl on the other end sweetly said. "Who is this?" "You mean you don't know who I am? It's Maya!" She joyfully answered. Lacus smiled at her cheerfulness, she was in the same homeroom class as her. "Anyway, I wanted to know if you would like to come out to town with me, Cagalli, and Mir!" She bubbled.

Lacus hesitated once more, "Uh, sure." She uneasily said. "Great! Meet us at the park in one hour. Bye! Talk to you then!" Maya reassuringly ended. Lacus sighed and got up. She grabbed her light, faded jeans and a pink shirt. Since it was cold she also put on a brown, fuzzy and furry jacket. _Are they trying to cheer me up?_ Lacus started to catch on.

She grabbed her purse and keys and slowly walked out the front door to the park a couple blocks away. When she got there, she saw Maya running up to her, followed by Mir and Cagalli smiling as they walked towards her. They all hugged and smiled at each other.

---

Athrun and Dearka got up out of the classroom and walked out. "You're...sure this is going to work?" Athrun solemnly asked. "Well, if it doesn't it doesn't. But fate will do the choosing really." Dearka said, sounding like a wise, old guru. He got a chuckle out of Athrun. "See. I am funny, and you're not." He grinned. Athrun pouted as they entered the park, they spotted Maya, Mir, Cagalli, and Lacus walking along the path.

Maya noticed them in the corner of her eye and gave a secret wink and a smile to them. Lacus still looked somber. It was depressing to see this lovely, sweet, and kind girl sad.

---

The four strolled through the park, it was awkardly quiet. Mir and Cagalli actually didn't know about the plan, but started to catch on that Maya was up to something. Maya tried to start a conversation and engaged in part one of their plan. They were to try to get Lacus to be so confident in her feelings that she could speak formally to Kira about it, and also casually after that.

"So guys, you all doing anything later on?" Maya sweetly asked. They all shook their heads. "Perfect! Then why don't we all come over to my house and have an all-girls sleepover? It'll be fun!!!" She bubbled, grinning from ear to ear. "Here, how about you guys go home and get your stuff packed, and meet me here in this spot when you're done!" Maya finalized.

Athrun and Dearka were about to leave seeing that Maya had a grip on the situation, but she shot them a stern glance telling them to wait a little longer.

Lacus departed from her friends and they went their seperate ways home. Once at home, she grabbed some clothes and threw them into an extra bag laying beside her bed. She changed into her blue nightgown and slipped into her brown furry jacket. Gripping tightly to her belongings she locked the door and left for the park.

It seemed Maya, Mir, and Cagalli were in Maya's car already, waiting for Lacus. She gave a depressed sigh and got into the car silently. Little did she know that Maya had explained her whole plan while Lacus was gone at her house. "Lacus, is there..anything you want to talk to us about?" Mir solemnly asked. "Yeah, we're here for you if you need to tell us something that's bothering you." Cagalli added.

By now they were almost to Maya's house, a countryside manor like Lacus'. The cherry blossom trees were in full bloom, and the pastel pink fronds were blowing around, creating a calm, melancholy atmosphere. A tear fell off of Lacus' cheek and gleamed in the clear sunlight.

"Did Kira do anything to upset you? Cause I'll pummel his ass the next time I see him if he did!!" Cagalli strangely tried to cheer Lacus up, her hands balled into angry fists. Lacus sighed and closed her eyes as she shook her head. Cagalli relaxed back in her seat and slightly smiled. "You guys, I trust you with all my heart as close friends. So, please help me. I...I...I think I'm..well..um." Lacus hesitated again. Maya couldn't bear to keep her excitement in for Lacus, and for Kira. _Here it comes...Come on Lacus!!!_

Lacus gave a sigh of reassurance and closed her eyes. "Love can be a terrible thing, huh?"


	7. His Problems

A/N R/R as usual! Sorry if it may seem a little fluffy, I had to go along with it, but I promise that there isn't too much fluff in the remaining chapters!

Chapter 7 : His Problems

After the girls left, Athrun and Dearka had sat down on a bench near the front entrance of the park.

"Hey Athrun, get out your cellphone. Kira's probably sulking lazily around his house by now, and we got to hurry up or else Maya will be too far ahead with Lacus!" Dearka suddenly burst out. Athrun was startled at first by Dearka's sudden demand for his cellphone, but quickly slipped it out of his jacket pocket before Dearka could grab it out.

He dialed Kira's cellphone. Athrun heard the first dial tone. The second. Then the third. Soon enough it just led to Kira's voicemail. Athrun sighed and hung up. "He's not answering. I suspected that he would turn it off."

Dearka frowned. "Here, I'll try his home phone..." Athrun said as he dialed again, a concerned tone in his voice. Dial tone...dial tone...dial tone... "Hello?" It was Kira.

Athrun broke out a small smile to Dearka and answered back, "Hey Kira, it's Athrun." "Hey! What's up?" He happily answered. Athrun was shocked at his giddy tone of voice, especially now of all times, "Hold up okay?" Athrun put it on mute.

"Dearka...He seems, happy." Athrun said with a confused face on. "What? This doesn't make sense...He couldn't have gotten over it this quickly, let alone getting over it in all." Dearka added. "Keep on going.." He demanded sharply as he crossed his arms. Athrun nodded and unmuted it.

"Hey Kira?"

"Yeah?"

"Okay, just checking if you were still there..So anyway...the Masquerade Ball is this Friday. Have you picked out anything for it? Got... -_Athrun swallowed a huge lump in his throat-_...a date?" Athrun eagerly awaited the answer. Kira's voice softened a bit. "No actually, I don't.."

"Why don't you come with me and Dearka to go pick out an outfit and a mask right now? Meet us at the park. Then we'll solve your date problem...and.." Athrun then kept rambling on about what they would do. "Athrun..I ca..Athrun...Athrun...ATHRUN!!!" Kira interrupted his tangent. Athrun could hear Kira crying on the other end, his breathing getting heavier, his voice wavering. "I don't have anything prepared for it because..I'm not going."

Athrun's eye began twitching vigorously. He was at loss for words. Athrun hesitated to speak, "Come on, just go along with us. I'm sure you'll change your mind Kira." "Okay." Kira quietly spoke into the telephone, then hung up. Athrun closed his cellphone and slid it back into his pocket. "Now we just wait for Kira then..."

---

Kira had laid the phone back on the receiver and grabbed his black and red jacket, shirt, and pants out of his dresser. _What could they be planning..._ He thought as he changed out of his school uniform. Kira was catching on to their plan. When he was finished changing he put his cellphone into his pants pocket, heaved a great sigh, and left for the park, which was several blocks away from his house. As he walked, he thought about everything that had happened so far in this new school year.

Images of Lacus Clyne kept appearing in his mind, her tender voice speaking to him...Kira shook his head as the teardrops caressing his face flew off. _Thinking about her...Why am I thinking about her? I don't really understand this feeling. I've always isolated myself from most girls, but somehow..I felt different around her. Her..her..Who is she really? Lacus...couldn't have been different from any other girl I've met before! So why am I-- _

But Kira was cut off from his train of thought by Athrun and Dearka rushing over to meet him, that is, yelling for him of course. Dearka slung his arm over Kira's shoulder and Athrun patted his other shoulder. "Hey Kira! Let's get going." Dearka quickly said and pushed him forward. Athrun then ran ahead to his car, as Dearka shoved Kira into it. Kira chuckled awkardly and buckled his seat belt.

Athrun and Dearka had noticed the change in the way he acted. No, the change had happened at the beginning of the school year, but they were just too blind to notice it. But...what _was_ it? Athrun and Dearka both thought at the same time, _His..._

"Suffering." The two said out loud. "Huh?" Kira looked at the two of them, dumbfounded. He looked dead, not as in dead like he passed away, he looked like something was bothering him, but he chose to ignore it and hide it from the real world, thus, he looked so empty. "Uh, nothing." Athrun covered up. He couldn't take it anymore, watching Kira suffering like this, just doesn't seem fair to him.

"Kira." Athrun sternly said. "You don't have to hide it, you're real emotions, the ones you're feeling right now. You know, it's...okay to tell us what's on your mind. If anything's bothering you, we're here listening. We can help you Kira, if you're lost and confused in life." Kira's eyes widened, his voice faltering. He let out a shaky sigh. "I..I...I couldn't tell Lacus."

"Tell Lacus what?" Dearka asked, he couldn't bear to wait to hear his answer. Athrun bit his lip in secret, hoping that his best friend would feel comfortable enough to tell them. They both held their breath, awaiting the continuation of his sentence. Three words buzzed throughout Dearka's mind, excited for his friend, _Here it comes, Here it comes, Here it comes, Here it comes, Here it comes!!!_

"That I loved her."


	8. When Ends Meet

Author's Note : Sorry for the randomness with the poptarts and all, I couldn't think of anything else. Oh yeah, and sorry for the long hiatus, I wasn't able to catch a spare moment on the computer, and I also got my inspiration back now(lol) from watching Final Plus!

Chapter 8 : When Ends Meet

Lacus looked at her masquerade dress on the mannequin by her bedside, the moonlight illuminating and accenting the way the ends of the dress gracefully fell to the floor. It was Wednesday already, two days before the ball…Time had flown by quickly. Their whole class skipped school this week to prepare for the ball, it was a tradition in all to make this ball as special and stunning as can be, so they needed all the time they could spare.

It had a pearly white mask to match with it, but it wasn't an ordinary mask. It had silk ribbons flowing from the sides, sparkles and sequins decorating empty spots on it, and of course diamonds in the top corners. It was a truly remarkable mask.

But if the mask is beautiful, then the dress was simply indescribably drop-dead gorgeous. The dress was a silk white tube top dress that flowed outwards at the ends, and was studded with diamonds and was basically sparkly all over. A big velvet ribbon tied the back, which would certainly show Lacus' hourglass figure.

Lacus sighed and decided to walk outside a bit for some fresh air, regardless of how late at night it was she still went out. Lacus broke out a small smile at this magnificent outfit, it was perfect. Well, almost. Something was missing. Now more confident from her friends, she thought as she walked out the door…

_Next time I'll tell him for sure._

---

Kira took his suit and hung it up in front of his closet. His suit was the standard tuxedo––black pants and a black jacket, a plain white shirt, the works. He had a white rose corsage prepared, and it was sitting in the fridge.

But…why?

Why did he still have things prepared for something he wasn't going to…Ah yes, with the help of his friends, he had made a quick and easy decision to go to the Masquerade Ball, but for who?

Yes, he remembered clearly in his mind now why. For some reason it was the only thing he could think of, the only thing he could picture himself with…Lacus.

_Hm?_ Kira smelled a foul, burnt scent in the air. His jaw dropped, and he darted down the stairs to the kitchen. The pop-tarts he was making for a midnight snack were…_gulp_…burnt. He picked them out with his fingers.

"Ah, ouch!" He yelled as he felt the searing hot poptart rub against his skin. He left them on the floor, as smoke rose from the toaster and filled the kitchen. He didn't have a smoke alarm, and there was no fire, so he just ran outside quickly to escape the haze.

Coughing and stumbling, he ran into the park. He often came there to think, because the cherry blossoms and peaceful atmosphere of the park soothed him. And plus, the cherry blossoms were in full bloom and the precious, pink petals flowed everywhere. Kira stopped in front of the fountain at the center of the park.

The moonlight reflected off its pristine waters, and all the trees and bushes' reflection showed on it. Kira gazed around the fountain at all the different shapes. _Huh?_

Just then, a slender figure's reflection appeared on the other end of the fountain, its blue eyes were serene, and beautiful. He looked up. Time slowed down once more. The wind picked up, and pink petals whirled around them.

It was Lacus. For a minute, they stood there, staring into each other's eyes, lost in a daze at what fate had brought them to.

---

_Fate…_ Lacus thought again as she remained gazing into Kira's eyes. He was the first to speak. He smiled, "Hey Lacus." He said as he walked towards her. "Kira." Lacus said with a hint of surprise in her voice.

The two couldn't keep their eyes off each other one bit. Lacus backed up and bumped into the fountain wall, making her plop down on the side of it. They both laughed together at Lacus' clumsiness.

Sitting back on the wall next to her, he left a blank, but seemingly happy face on. "It's a beautiful night tonight, isn't it?" Lacus gently asked, gazing now into the quiet night sky. Kira looked gingerly towards Lacus and smiled, "Yes, it is." And so he began with it. "Hey Lacus...Are you..going to the ball on friday?"

Somewhat surprised, she answered, "Y-Yes." "Then," he took her hand softly and continued, "Will you go with me to the ball?" She knew her immediate answer, "Yes, of course!" He had it all layed out for what he would do now that it was set. He smiled and attempted to hug her in his happiness, but she pulled away.

He was taken aback and withdrew his arms. A tear glittered away in the wind. "What's wrong?" Kira asked. Lacus tried to speak, "I..I'm sorry." She quietly murmured. "For what?" Kira asked again, feeling like they were playing twenty questions. "You know, what happened at school..."

Kira, feeling like she wasn't finished with what she was saying, kept quiet. "I didn't get to tell you...what I..needed to say." Lacus was inching closer to that point again, but hesitation struck again, she fought it though. "What I needed to say was..."

Kira looked down, causing Lacus to stop.

"I love you."


	9. Mission Complete

Author's Note : You'll see why Lacus is being so apprehensive about going to school the next day in the next chapter. Just a heads up!

Chapter 9 : Mission Complete

Athrun, Dearka, Cagalli, Mir, and Maya had gathered at the local cafe, regardless of how late it was now. Athrun and Dearka had secretly checked up on Kira and saw he was gone. Then Mir and Maya checked up on Lacus and found she was nowhere to be found either. Cagalli had just tagged along, still shutting herself off from the guys really.

"Okay guys, let's hope for the best and...well, leave it to them!" Maya tiredly yelled out. "Yeah, I hope this works out." Miriallia added.

Maya slyly smiled as an idea popped into her head. The perfect time for this!! "Hey guys..." She smiled proudly at her idea as everyone leaned in to hear her. "How about you all?" Everyone looked confused. "Do you guys have dates to the ball? Don't worry about me, an upperclassman already asked me! Miriallia and Dearka, you two are going together right? Awesome!"

Athrun and Cagalli, now taken aback, laid back in their chairs and shut their mouths. They knew _exactly_ who she was trying to set up. Maya got irritated. "Come on, I know you two don't. Athrun, why don't you take Cagalli?"

Athrun sighed and sat up in his chair. Smiling straight at her, he asked, "Fine. Cagalli, would you like to go to the ball with me?" Her heart pounded, _What should I say?!?_ "U-Uh..Okay."

"Then it's settled! Everyone here has a date! Mission complete! You're all dismissed!!" And so Maya bubbly skipped home, and Dearka and Miriallia got up and left too.

---

As Dearka walked away from the group, he noticed Miriallia running to catch up with him. "HEY! You know, you don't have to be like that. What's wrong?" She asked, peering over Dearka's shoulder and looking at his flabbergasted face. "Sorry. It's just that I didn't really get to study that much for the exam tomorrow, and it's already late." He complained flatly, checking his watch. "Aw, it's okay..I can lend you my notes!"

Dearka looked surprised. They were a couple, but never really close to being a romantic couple. Mir slipped her yellow composition book out of her pack and shoved it in his face. "Come on, take it! You said you wanted to study!" She smiled, her blue eyes glistening.

He smiled and took it. As he took it, he kissed her on the cheek. She immediately held the spot that he had kissed and turned bright red.

"Uh..I-I got to go now.." Mir's voice faded away slowly and she took off home at a running start. Dearka smiled and turned around to get to his house. It turns out, that he only walked that way so he could talk to Miriallia.

---

"You going to pay? Because i'm sure as hell not paying. Athrun and Cagalli were left at the table with the check. "Okay, I will. But as long as you answer one question." Athrun asked, a happy tone in his voice. "And what is that?" Cagalli asked, the tone in her voice upset as her eyebrows furrowed.

"Why do you seem angry all the time?" Now Cagalli was the only on taken aback. "I..I...You know, no one's ever asked me that before..The truth is, I just get tired of...well, being alone all the time...My father's always busy, so I live by myself."

"You know..You really aren't alone. You've got your friends behind you. There's also Kira, Dearka, and me. You've got Maya too, and so many other people too." Athrun tried to help her feel better, even if she still seemed uptight, he noticed that some of the tension in her was lifting.

She looked surprised that he was trying to make her feel better. Cagalli shrugged and they both continued walking home.

---

Lacus froze at Kira's words. They rang in her head, just as Miriallia's words to her. _Love..._ She understood now.

"I..I...Me too." They hugged each other and began crying. "I..I love you too." She sobbed quietly. Kira and Lacus remained embracing each other for several seconds.

They pulled back, and Kira kissed her gently on the cheek. Lacus blushed crimson and smiled, the two folded their hands together tight. It seemed that nothing could pull them apart right there. Kira had an idea.

Then he whisked her away, still holding hands, out of the park. "Kira...Where are we going?" Lacus questionably asked, confused. Then it all made sense. They broke through a clearing and found themselves at a hidden section of the beach. "This is my secret place, I go here when I need to think and there's too many people at the park. It's a beautiful view."

And it truly was. The moonbeams hit the crystal-clear waters perfectly, leaving a deep royal blue color tinting the ocean. The sand was pure white, and the moon was full.

They sat down under a tree, sitting next to each other, still holding hands. "You know...it's funny." Lacus chuckled slightly. "What is?" Kira asked, smiling. "Well, we haven't known each other long, but it seems like I've known you forever." Lacus explained, as Kira kept a straight face, like he was waiting patiently for her.

"I feel the same way." Kira added. "You're going to school tomorrow for that exam in Japanese Grammar right? Everyone else in our homeroom is going to take it in the morning then we can leave if we want." Lacus asked, hoping for the answer she was expecting. "Yeah, I made a promise to my mom that I'd get a good education if I lived away from her. She's in Orb, but a different island right now.."

No, that wasn't the answer Lacus was expecting, but she went along with it. "Oh, okay, then I will too." They squeezed each other's hands tightly and Lacus rested her head on Kira's shoulder. It all seemed perfect.

But..a little too good to be true.


	10. Distorted Perspectives

Disclaimer : Too bad though, but I don't own Gundam Seed/Destiny or that whole monk story...

---

Chapter 10 : Distorted Perspectives 

Kira and Lacus sat next to each other in Dearka's car on the way to school. Everything seemed fine to Kira, but Lacus remained apprehensive. Athrun sat next to Cagalli, who now seemed less tense thanks to Athrun's caring words, and Miriallia sat next to Dearka in the front passenger seat, forced to sit there because of the couple-y seating arrangements of the four others.

Dearka was irked at the quietness of today's ride. "So...Miriallia, I studied your notes and they were really helpful! Thanks!" He gleefully thanked her as he slipped the notebook into her hands. Dearka continued, "So how did you guys do with studying for the test today?"

It seemed like no one was listening to him. They all just stared out the window. He sighed and layed back on his chair as he neared the school parking lot.

They all saw Kira smile at Lacus as he offered her his hand to help her out of the car. She thanked him and grabbed her pink backpack out of the back. They now walked side by side, occasionally holding hands. When Lacus saw that nobody took notice of them at first, she relaxed and layed her head on his shoulder gently as they walked to class together. They looked like a match made in heaven...

---

Maya came out of their homeroom classroom to go make copies of several worksheets, and when she saw Kira and Lacus she smiled and jumped up and down in her joy for her job well done. In fact, she got so excited that she dropped all her papers. They flew across the floor in a random fashion.

Then all of a sudden, a pink sneaker stomped right in front of her as she picked up the last paper. "I thought I had ruined that good for nothing goody-two-shoes pink princess!!!"

It was Mai Saitou, the cheerleading club captain again. Maya got up ever so slowly as Mai towered over her maniacally. "For some reason Matsuragi...I have a feeling that _you_ had something to do with this..." She cocked her head sharply to the side. Maya, seemingly scared, replied in a stuttering voice with, "W-Why would you think that Mai? I have always been so courteous to you..." And she gave out a false smile half jeering at Mai.

Mai made a deep rumbling noise and stormed away.

As soon as she was out of sight Maya made a break for it and darted her way to homeroom, her heart practically jumping out of her chest by now.

---

Our lovely couple A.K.A. Kira and Lacus had made it to their lockers. Even though no one said a thing, they both knew it already. There would be some crazy whack-job fan-people of theirs that would be starting some major propaganda. As clique by clique walked past, eyes burned deep into their backs.

That feeling that someone was talking about you while you were there...

During their walk to homeroom, there lay a thin blanket of whispers floating along as the hallways hushed with their appearance. Lacus and Kira just walked straight on, without even sparing a passing glance to Athrun and Cagalli, who were at their lockers waiting for a hello, but then they noticed that it wasn't a good time for that right now..

---

Now there were _some _people who actually liked the couple. Some people such as Mikki Yamamato, Shinji Kamakura, Nami Mikihara, and several more people.They were the people who actually knew the two as personal friends or acquaintances.

---

Kira and Lacus sat down next to each other, and a swarm of people circled around them in an instant! These included Mikki Yamamato, Shinji Kamakura, Nami Mikihara, and...Mai Saitou. Some more fan-people completed this absurd crowd.

Questions ranging from "WHAT THE HELL MAN??!? Are you two going out now?!?" to "I'm so happy for you guys!! Awesome!!" rang about the room.

It seemed as if the world was spinning out into oblivion, like a calm, peaceful prairie turned into Junius Seven's remains! Kira attempted to get up, he was knocked back down. Lacus covered her ears and tried to shut out the noise.

Soon enough sensei kicked the door down in a drastic hurry.

"What in the world is going on here???" She furiously screamed, trying to make her voice louder than all the rest of them. Everyone froze in an instant and backed up, leaving Kira and Lacus to stand out like a sore thumb. The teacher focused her piercing sharp eyes at the two. She pointed her finger strongly at them and yelled, "You two are just soooo lucky that the payments for the Ball tonight have been cashed in already!!!" And so she walked away to her desk and class began solemnly.

By lunch, that expected propaganda had worsened...

---

Maya sat behind a cherry tree slurping up the remaining juice left in her juice box. She heard approaching footsteps and giggles, then took a chance and threw her juice box into a nearby trash can. Resting her head on the tree, concealing her whole self, she eavesdropped to see what people had been hearing and spreading.

Their words echoed through her head as her eyes widened at this chaos that has stirred up.

_I heard that Lacus is actually a fake beauty, and she's just using Kira to cover up for her plastic surgery..So Mai said that we had to break them up at all costs._

_You know, I think they're just paying each other to be dates so that they aren't losers, because they killed Mai's best friend! I mean her cat best friend she told me._

_Mai has a cat? Oh well, in any case, Mai said that they have been secretly making fun of her and beating her up and even torturing her!!! That's horrible...they're so fake. They look so innocent at school but..._

_Come on, let's go home to get ready for the ball..And we can think of how we can help Mai cope with her terrible loss..I would hate them so much if they killed my cat!!!!!!!!!_

She sighed in grief. _Everything happens for a reason, right?_

She remembered an old childhood story of hers.

Once upona time,

there lived a monk. He was homeless, and therefore had few possessions. Those few included a rooster, a lantern, and a horse.

Since he had no homeplus it was raining hard, he sought refuge in a nearby village. On his way to the village, two countrymen tried to mug him. He told them, "I will follow God for eternity. He makes everything happen for the common good of His children." One of them pushed him down into a muddy puddle and kicked him in the head, blurring his vision for several seconds and eventually rendering him unconscious.. The other stole his horse and ran off with it.

When he woke up, he resumed his journey to the village. The sky had darkened since earlier...

He attempted to light his lantern.

No use. The rain burnt it out.

He sighed and reminded himself.

_I will follow God for eternity. He makes everything happen for the common good of His children._

When his legs tired from walking he settled down by a rocky ledge. He let his rooster out for some fresh air. He then fell asleep on a log.

_SCREECH!_ He woke up to the sound of a hawk. It had come down and eaten his rooster.

He kept his hopes up on two sentences..

_I will follow God for eternity. He makes everything happen for the common good of His children._

Once he had gotten to the village they turned him down. Discouraged a bit, he traveled away from the village. One hot, sunny day, the monk heard the sound of a horse galloping quickly in the direction of the village, and turned around. It was a courier. The courier stopped. "The village a couple miles from here has been massacred by a rival savage clan who reside six miles from them! Please spread the news as far as you can. Do you have any other information about this incident???"

The monk replied with, "I will follow God for eternity. He makes everything happen for the common good of His children."

And indeed everything did happen for the common good of God's children...

If his horse had not been stolen, the savage clan would have seen his horse grazing and killed him. If his lantern had not burnt out, they would have seen it burning and killed him. If his rooster had not been eaten, they would have heard it crow and killed him.

So we shall follow God for eternity. He makes everything happen for the common good of His children.

Maya ran home to get ready for the ball..

Wait a minute..the ball's tonight!!!!!!!!


	11. The Masquerade Ball Pt 1

Please Note : Chapter 11 is a special exclusive chapter. So it's gonna be a little long...eep. Not to mention different formatting...Enjoy. :P Oh yeah, but did I mention that it was going to be in two seperate parts?? lol.

Chapter 11 : The Masquerade Ball Pt. 1

**i. prelude to a fairytale**

Yes, it was tonight. The Masquerade Ball everyone was dying to attend.

Girls spent a fortune for this night, their dream night. This night that could very well change their lives, or crush them.

Boys hoped to find their dream girl. The whole concept of The Masquerade Ball...

Find the one you hold most dear when sifting through the crowd of masked ladies and gentlemen. There have been countless stories of masquerade balls where boy and girl meet but do not know each other, for they are not permitted to take off their masks, and eventually...they fall in _love_.

**ii. princesses are supposed to be insecure**

Lacus stepped out of the shower solemnly and dodged all the conveniently placed mirrors that reflected an image of herself. She put on her coral pink bathrobe and walked into her room.

That dress was absolutely stunning.

She lay on her bed, contemplating on the future, when a light brown-hair girl and a blonde girl ran in and jumped onto the couch in her room.

It was Miriallia and Cagalli.

They were already dressed, but their hair wasn't done yet. Miriallia was the first to speak, "Lacus!! You have to hurry you know..The Ball's in three hours!" Lacus snapped out of her concentrated thought, and replied with, "Okay, I'll get dressed now." She took the dress of the mannequin gently and walked into her dressing room. She slipped on the dress and then put the mask on. Wow, the dress was pretty heavy from the diamonds. After that, she put on light makeup--eyeliner, blush, eyeshadow, and of course foundation.

She sighed and didn't look in the mirror at herself, but just walked out of the dressing room to her room. Lacus gazed around the room then focused her attention to Mir and Cagalli over by the mirror. Miriallia had just finished doing Cagalli's hair (though she pouted at the girlyness of everything). Miriallia's hair was finished too. Cagalli had pink roses with green ribbons attached to it in her hair. Her hair was also down. She seemed like a different person...a, well, girly girl.

Mir curled her hair and tied it up in a cute, modern fashion.

But the one that stood out in that room was Lacus. They both stopped what they were doing to gaze upon her beauty. Mir envied it, Cagalli was simply stunned. "You look gorgeous Lacus!!!" Mir squealed. "Yeah." Cagalli added. Mir pouted after a couple seconds.

"Lacus...you're not _seriously_ going to the Ball with just street makeup on..are you? And we can add some jewelry too!" Mir scanned Lacus' dressers for the prettiest jewelry. It seemed she wanted to borrow some too, and Lacus let her. She picked some earrings, necklaces, bracelets, and rings up from one dresser and ran towards Lacus.

"Um, Mir, it's alright. I'm fine this way." She murmured. Mir's mouth dropped. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!? Your hair isn't even done!" "No, it's okay. I'll be fine, really!" She urged Mir to stop, but Mir became overzealous and refused to stop. "Come over here." She grabbed Lacus and shoved Cagalli out of the stool in front of the mirror. Mir started curling Lacus' hair, then fixing it up. Her hair was let down, but Mir did something that made her hair seem like it was blasted back. Last was makeup.

When she finished, the end product was wonderfully beautiful. Mir grinned at her masterpiece. "Okay Lacus, Cagalli and I are going to go home now. Well, at least, I am. I'm going to rest for a bit." And so Miriallia and Cagalli left Lacus sitting on the stool in front of the mirror. She sighed and decided she would get some rest time in before the Ball.

There was but one person on her mind, in her dreams.

**iii. behold the knight**

Kira straightened his tie, and slipped his black mask on. Athrun and Dearka were banging on the door for him to hurry up. After all, the Ball was only two hours away now, and they were going to pick up corsages then pick up their dates individually.

**iv. out damn spot**

Mai Saitou, a seemingly heartless girl.

She went with a traditional japanese elegant kimono with a slight modern touch. It was light aquamarine fading into white, with a deep royal blue design and ribbon. Her hair was in two long, curly pigtails with a royal blue ribbon holding the two pigtails together.

Mai frowned in the mirror. A tear was shed.

Regret filled her heart to the top. She dropped down onto her bed. She didn't mean to and didn't want to hurt anybody. _I just get carried away a lot and_ _forget myself.._ Maybe a lesson was to be learned from this. Yes, there was. She covered her face with her hands, sobbing, and walked slowly to the bathroom.

She started to washing her hands vigorously, trying to wash away the trouble she had caused. Her hands began bleeding for she was rubbing so hard. Mai cried out loud in grief.

She was ashamed of herself.

**v. sleeping beauty**

Lacus drifted off to sleep in her bed. She was tired.

It felt good to rest her eyes and ears. It seems today was too much for her.

**vi. the ever-waiting knight**

Kira woke up to the sound of his annoying cellphone alarming. He drearily rubbed his eyes, then made his way to his car outside. He was somewhat nervous yet somehow anxious, because it was basically an anything-goes night where there seriously was no other moment to be expected to happen.

While looking out the window, Kira noticed the change in that vast field of green he saw in the beginning of the year. By now, there were orchards of sweet-smelling fruits and an abundance of flowers.

_Things never stay the same do they..._

He broke out a small smile and pulled into Lacus' driveway. As Kira walked up the stairway to the front doors, he prepared himself by brushing off any speck of dirt or dust off his jacket.

He door-belled and knocked on the door.

_**To be continued...**_


End file.
